Angry Irishman Key Lime Cupcakes

Whimsical "Angry Irishman" key lime cupcakes for St. Patrick's Day.

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 23

Total Time 1 23

Servings cupcakes

Author Amee

For the Cupcakes:24 yellow butter cake cupcakes homemade or from a boxed mix, baked into green paper cupcake liners
1 small can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup key lime juice make sure it's key lime and not regular lime juice, you want the tartness of the key limes
1 double batch buttercream frosting separated (recipe follows)
1 bag sweet and sour green liquorice strips for hats
black icing for hat-I used the sparkle icing
Chocolate dessert sprinkles for eyebrows
confetti sequins candies you need the yellow for the hats
small candy eyes
orange gel food coloring
Red jelly beans for nose
For the Frosting I double this recipe:8 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
3 ¾ cups confectioner's sugar sifted
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract so it won't darken your frosting color
3-4 tablespoon key lime juice
pinch of sea salt

For Hats:Make 24 hats using the following method.
Cut liquorice strips into the shape of a hat.
Using the black icing, pipe a line for the hat ribbon, then place a yellow confetti candy sequin in the middle for the hat buckle.
Set hats aside and allow them to dry for 24 hours.
Bake Cupcakes:Bake 24 yellow butter cake cupcakes according to a homemade recipe or box cake directions and set aside to cool.

In a small mixing bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk with ½ cup key lime juice and stir with a whisk. You can also add a teaspoon of fresh lime zest to this mixture.
Place mixture inside a piping bag with a Wilton #230 filling tip attached.
While holding a cupcake in one hand, use other hand to insert a cupcake filling tip in the middle of the cupcake. Slowly pull tip up and out as you feel the cupcake start to expand with filling. Repeat procedure with all 24 cupcakes.
Prepare Frosting:Using an electric mixer, whip butter in a mixing bowl until fluffy. Add sugar, salt, lime juice and vanilla. Blend slowly until incorporated and then gradually increase speed until frosting is smooth and creamy.
Separate ⅓ of the buttercream frosting into a bowl and add orange food color gel to it. Blend until uniform and place into a decorating bag with a star tip attached. Set aside.
Cupcake Assembly:Use the remaining white frosting to spread a thin "crumb" layer of frosting onto the top of each cupcake and then refrigerate for an hour or so to allow it to firm up.
After crumb layer has set, fully frost tops of cupcakes using a flat frosting spatula to achieve a smooth surface.
Place a hat on top of each cupcake and then add the candy eyes and one chocolate sprinkle for each eyebrow. Add a jellybean nose and then pipe orange frosting to create a beard onto each cupcake.